Thursday, December 8, 2011

Giving Where It's Needed

This time of year it's easy to lose sight of the basics when it comes to gift giving. A Giving Spirit Foundation helps families who just need to pay the power bill, buy groceries and/or pay the rent but can't because their money is going toward surgeries or other necessities due to their health situation.

Here are just a few of the wonderful responses AGSF hears when a grant is approved:

"God will bless people like you in special ways for helping people like me"

"You are the bright light in an otherwise grim and terribly stressful time."

"You have helped make my patients feel like they are somebody worthy of attention and compassion, something that is so often so hard for them to find."

"You have definitely changed a life with this gift."

"Thank You! [She] will now be able to remain in her home!"


Let's continue to help the people who need helping this holiday season - you can do your part by making a donation to A Giving Spirit Foundation.

Friday, September 30, 2011

"They made me feel like somebody."

September 26, 2011

Dear Friends of A Giving Spirit Foundation,

“What do you say to a mother battling life-threatening cancer when she says ‘We will be homeless, me and my kids’ as she shares the journey of her darkest hour. With eviction looming overhead and not a resource in sight, my patient thought the situation was hopeless. She was ready to give up. Until A Giving Spirit Foundation stepped in to shine their light. To say thank you to what I consider a group of angels on Earth is not enough and I wish I could capture the tears of joy and expression of gratitude that patients share upon receiving news they have been blessed by a grant from A Giving Spirit. It’s like having the front row to watch a miracle take place. One particular mom exclaimed ‘they made me feel like somebody.’ What can you say to that? To all the angels of A Giving Spirit Foundation, my deepest gratitude for shining your light, making miracles happen and giving my patients the precious gift of hope.” Mellisa Wheeler, Blumenthal Cancer Center

Mellisa Wheeler understands all too well the stress that families feel when the mother has been diagnosed with a debilitating disease and the family does not have the financial resources to pay for healthcare and choices need to be made between the mother’s health and the basics like rent and groceries. As the American Cancer Society Patient Resource Navigator for the Blumenthal Cancer Center in Charlotte, NC, she sees this pain and struggle every day. Fortunately, A Giving Spirit has been able to ease the burden for three of her patients this year and the gratitude that these mothers have expressed make it clear that there is a need for A Giving Spirit Foundation in the greater Charlotte community.

Every person receiving this letter deserves some of this gratitude. Without your support, AGSF would have been unable to bring relief to the many families that have received grants over the last three years. In the past year, AGSF has awarded over $13,000 in grants to these deserving families.

Operating under the vision of Laura Woodall, A Giving Spirit Foundation strives to lend a helping hand to deserving mothers in the Davidson and greater Charlotte, NC communities suffering from a debilitating disease or other unforeseen major health challenges. Of equal importance is supporting research organizations who are searching for a cure for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Organizations like Project

ALS, The ALS Association and the ALS division of MDA do fantastic work and are making advances every day. AGSF is proud to support them. AGSF donated $1500 to these organizations over the past year to go directly toward ALS research.

Laura says it best: “It was the invitation from friends and my opportunity to give back that embarked a journey which has proven worthy. A Giving Spirit Foundation (just three years young) has given to individuals who needed assistance, has given to research, has created a board to guide the mission, and has successfully hosted three fundraisers. It is my and my family's hope that this foundation continues to give back. My vision is that A Giving Spirit Foundation will persevere for years to come. Your support will drive that vision. If you find yourself in a position, when you can give or want to give... I strongly encourage you to give to A Giving Spirit Foundation. My wish is that you become a giving spirit.”

For the past several years, AGSF has raised the majority of our funds through the annual Autumn Fest event. Last year’s event raised over $12,000 from attendees, silent auction bidding and donations from supporters unable to attend the event. Again, we thank you all for your contributions last year! A big special thank you goes to Kelly and Steve Gentry, who hosted the event at their beautiful home, local bands Sunday Union and Billy Jones who kept everyone entertained, and especially to the many wonderful women and men on the AGSF volunteer committee (led by Kim Fleming and Melissa Reddick). These people spent countless hours organizing this phenomenal event and it could not have gone more smoothly.

So, we’re giving our volunteers a year off this year from planning the big event. Instead, we’re going to treat this as a building year. We’re working on strengthening relationships in the community and learn how to build a stronger organization that can raise money year round and not be dependent on one large annual event. We’re here for the long haul so that we can realize Laura Woodall’s vision by continuing to make the lives of deserving mothers in the community facing a health challenge a little bit easier.

If you have fundraising ideas or experience and would like to become more involved, please email us at agsf@agivingspirit.org.

“They made me feel like somebody.” And that, my friends, is why we do this.


Sincerely,


The AGSF Board of Trustees

Sunday, September 18, 2011

It's a good day to support AGSF!

Approximately 14 cases of ALS are diagnosed each day. Most who develop the disease are between 40 and 70 yrs of age. The average expected survival time for those suffering from ALS is 3 to 5 yrs.

Any day is a good day to give a donation to A Giving Spirit Foundation.  You can donate by credit card using our secure site by clicking the Donate button in the upper right corner of this site.  


Or, mail a check made out to A Giving Spirit Foundation to:
A Giving Spirit Foundation

PO Box 815 
Davidson, NC  28036


Matching Gift Program
Many corporations allow their employees to increase the value of their donations to charitable and other organizations through a matching gift from the company.  Please consider checking with your employer to see if they have a matching gift program when making your gift to A Giving Spirit Foundation.


A Giving Spirit Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Buy a Book, Support ALS Research!

A Giving Spirit Foundation proudly supports the work done by Project A.L.S. - they are committed like no other organization to finding a cure for this disease.   The actor Rob Morrow is a dedicated Project A.L.S. Board Member and has written a short story about his adventures playing golf in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and proceeds will go to Project A.L.S.

In his words:
My friends, A year and a half ago I played golf in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.  It was an extraordinary and inspirational odyssey.  I've written a short story about it that is now available on Kindle Shorts. All items on the Amazon Kindle Store can be downloaded and read using the free Kindle app on a PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, Android and Windows Phone 7.  The proceeds are going to Project ALS, which has been making significant breakthroughs toward eradicating not only ALS, but Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and spinal injuries.  The day is coming when these afflictions will be a thing of the past.  Please make the small donation of $2.99 and get An Actors Nightmare (Redux) for yourself or anyone you know interested in golf and the creative process.  We are going to put these diseases behind us, it's just a question of when. 

Hope you are all having a great summer and are not being tortured by the golf gods as I am...

Many thanks, 
Rob Morrow


So, if you were a fan of Northern Exposure, golf, books, reading funny tales of an actor or just want an easy way to donate money to a wonderful organization searching for a cure to a terrible disease, you'll want to buy Rob Morrow's short "The Actor's Nightmare: Redux" today!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Financial Help Is Available



Are you in need of financial assistance due to the high costs when suffering from a debilitating disease?  A Giving Spirit Foundation may be able to help you.  If you are a mother in the Davidson/Charlotte, NC community experiencing financial difficulties due to your debilitating disease, you may qualify to receive a financial grant from A Giving Spirit Foundation.

Nancy Brown of Davidson, NC received a grant earlier this year to help her family of six in the midst of financial issues brought on by three devastating diagnoses .  In 1998 her daughter was born with spinabifida.  Her husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2004.  Several years later, Nancy was diagnosed with breast cancer.    

“We've always managed to keep up with, if not ahead of, our medical issues until this last event,” Nancy explains. “A Giving Spirit Foundation reached out to us at a time that couldn't have been more perfect.  We were hard pressed to make the mortgage after a few months and didn't know where to turn for help.  That gift relieved the stress we were under and gave us breathing room to figure out the finances, to locate help. It may not have seemed like much, but when your choices are deciding whether to move or how to afford to feed a family of 6 on $100 a month, it was priceless.”

Nancy’s story exemplifies why AGSF works hard to raise funds and provide grants to families in their time of need. 

To learn more or request a grant application for yourself or someone you know that fits this criteria, please email agsf@agivingspirit.org.


Sunday, May 1, 2011

May is ALS Awareness Month



If you ask someone if they know anything about ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), most will ask if that's the disease Lou Gehrig had.  The answer is Yes, but there's much more to know about this disease:


  • Approximately every 90 minutes, ALS  claims the life of one American.
  • 5600 people in the US are diagnosed with ALS each year.
  • ALS affects 2 per 10,000 people.
  • As many as 30,000 Americans may have the disease at any given time.
  • ALS occurs throughout the world, with no racial, ethnic or socioeconomic boundaries.

To learn more about how ALS affects people just like you, read "ALS - Anyone's Life Story" on www.als-mda.org


There are many wonderful organizations fighting for a cure, a few are listed below.  Please, help raise funds and awareness in May or any other month of the year.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Financial Help Is Available



Are you in need of financial assistance due to the high costs when suffering from a debilitating disease?  A Giving Spirit Foundation may be able to help you.  If you are a mother in the Davidson/Charlotte, NC community experiencing financial difficulties due to your debilitating disease, you may qualify to receive a financial grant from A Giving Spirit Foundation.

Nancy Brown of Davidson, NC received a grant earlier this year to help her family of six in the midst of financial issues brought on by three devastating diagnoses .  In 1998 her daughter was born with spinabifida.  Her husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2004.  Several years later, Nancy was diagnosed with breast cancer.    

We've always managed to keep up with, if not ahead of, our medical issues until this last event,” Nancy explains. “A Giving Spirit Foundation reached out to us at a time that couldn't have been more perfect.  We were hard pressed to make the mortgage after a few months and didn't know where to turn for help.  That gift relieved the stress we were under and gave us breathing room to figure out the finances, to locate help. It may not have seemed like much, but when your choices are deciding whether to move or how to afford to feed a family of 6 on $100 a month, it was priceless.

Nancy’s story exemplifies why AGSF works hard to raise funds and provide grants to families in their time of need. 

To learn more or request a grant application for yourself or someone you know that fits this criteria, please email agsf@agivingspirit.org.